The present invention relates to a network printing system composed of personal computers (hereinafter, abbreviated to PCs), a server and a printing apparatus such as printers and MFPs (Multiple Function Peripherals), each of which is connected to a network.
In recent years, use of printing apparatuses connected to a network such as LAN (Local Area Network) has been becoming mainstream in business offices. Such printing apparatuses connected a network include, for example, the ones disclosed in a first prior art (JP 2002-318852A) and a second prior art (JP H11-175267A).
In a printing management system disclosed in the first prior art, a shop that is a printing shop having printers, a client PC, and a center server can communicate with each other via the Internet. For printing created documents and the like, the client PC creates print data based on print settings set by a user in accordance with attribute information (device characteristics, paper sizes and the like of each printer of the shop) in a printer information description file. Further, while storing information such as shop specification and print option specification as print setting information, the client PC creates a print order containing the print setting information and a printer-dedicated description language file based on the print data, and uploads the print order to the center server via the Internet.
Then, based on the received print setting information, the center server tentatively stores the print order in a transfer unit in the case where a specified shop is a printing shop that is categorized to dial-up access to the Internet, and the center server transmits the stored print order when accessed by the corresponding shop. The shop outputs the printer-dedicated description language file to a printer according to the print setting information contained in the received print order. Then the printer prints out the printer-dedicated description language file according to the description of the print setting information.
Further, in the print control system disclosed in the second prior art, a printer is connected to a host computer via a two-way interface such as local networks, and the host computer and a plurality of host computer systems are connected to a wide-area network. A hard disk of one host computer system has stored a printer driver, setup utilities, printer setting information and an instruction manual corresponding to the printer.
In a ROM (Read Only Memory) of the printer, there are stored location information for indicating respective locations at which the printer driver, the setup utilities, the printer setting information and the instruction manual are stored on the wide-area network. The location information is sent to the host computer via the two-way interface by an instruction from the host computer and stored in a ROM of the host computer.
After these steps, the host computer establishes a connection to a server specified by the positional information on the wide-area network contained in the location information, and downloads print control information such as the printer driver, the setup utilities, the printer setting information and the instruction manual.
However, the printing management system disclosed in the first prior art and the printer control system disclosed in the second prior art have the following problems.
That is, in recent years, department management in printing operation has been being practiced, for example, by setting the upper limit of the number of print copies on the department basis. In such a case where the upper limit of the number of print copies is set on the department basis, it is extremely inconvenient for users if the printing operation is stopped immediately when the number of print copies reaches the upper limit. Accordingly, there is a case where printing in save mode such as 2-in-1 printing mode and two-side printing mode is automatically conducted once the number of printed copies has reached a specified number that is lower than the upper limit.
In this connection, in the printing management system disclosed in the first prior art, print setting information is created by the client PC and is sent from the center server to a shop, and the shop outputs the printer-dedicated description language file to a printer in accordance with the received print setting information. Therefore, in the case of setting the save-mode printing, it is necessary for the client PC side to create the print setting information including the setting of the save-mode printing.
Further in the printer control system disclosed in the second prior art, location information on the print control information is obtained from the ROM of the printer by the host computer, and based on the obtained location information, the print control information connected to the wide-area network is downloaded. Therefore, in the case of setting the save-mode printing, it is necessary to store the setting of the save-mode printing and its location information in the printer and the hard disk of the one host computer system.
Consequently, in cases where the save-mode printing is set in the conventional network printing system, a network administrator needs to set up individual client PCs as well as a host computer system and a printer for the save-mode printing, which is considerably troublesome as a disadvantage. Alternatively, it is necessary to well acquaint each user with the set-up of each client PC for the save-mode printing, as another problem.